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Cookies, cakes, and baked biscuits are all part of special
occasions, such as Christmas, New Year, and birthday celebrations.
However, all these products are high in calories, especially from
fat and refined carbohydrates (sugars). Eating too much of these
foods can make you gain back the pounds you've already lost and
lead you to uncomfortable guilt feelings. Moreover, the excessive
consumption of these foods may accelerate the development of
chronic conditions, such as diabetes and hypertension (high blood
pressure). But, what should we do if we love them?

Today is your lucky day! Here are some useful, easy-to-follow
tips to cut down on calories, fat, and refined carbohydrates in the
recipes of your favorite cookies, cakes, biscuits,
muffins and
all those baked goods that drive us crazy. You just need to learn
how to replace some ingredients for healthier ones:

Butter and vegetable oils are widely used in the preparation of
most pastries and bakery to provide moisture to our cakes and
muffins. However, butter and oils are very high in fat, and should
therefore be replaced by healthier ingredients, such as fruit
purees: apple, plum, or banana. Butter can be substituted by
low-fat yogurt, especially when making pie crusts, cookies, or
biscuits.

To cut down on
cholesterol, two egg whites can often be used to replace one
whole egg. The egg yolk is the part of the egg where most fat and
cholesterol are found. Nevertheless, this substitution may not
always be possible, since the yolk is responsible of the adequate
consistency of many doughs.

Almost all bakery products, such as cakes, cookies, and muffins
are prepared with flour. This is a great opportunity to reduce the
amount of refined carbohydrates and increase the amount of complex
ones in your diet. You can do this by substituting half the amount
of flour with whole-wheat flour or oats. This way, you’ll make
healthy, high-fiber cakes.

Keep in mind that you can always replace
sugar with
artificial sweeteners, such as sucralose, saccharine, or aspartame.
This will not only reduce the calories of your cake, but also the
amount of sugars and refined carbohydrates.

Since you'll be modifying the original version of a recipe, we
recommend you try it first to test its flavor and consistency.
Experimenting will lead you to better results each time. However,
be careful not to make too many replacements on the same recipe, or
you might alter its original flavor.

Brownies

Makes 12 servings.

Ingredients:

Original Recipe

Modified Recipe

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Non-stick vegetable oil spray

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole-wheat flour

1/2 cup powdered cocoa

1/2 cup powdered cocoa (no sugar added)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

4 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon instant coffee

1 tablespoon instant coffee

1 cup sugar

1 cup artificial sweetener

2 eggs

1 egg

2 egg whites

¼ cup butter

1/4 cup plum puree

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Total calories per serving: 165

Total calories per serving: 102

Directions:

Preheat an oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a baking tray with the
cooking spray.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, and baking powder.
Leave aside.

In a saucepan, melt the 4 tablespoons of butter at medium heat.
Add the coffee and wait until it dissolves. Remove from the heat
and let cool slightly. Using a spatula, add the artificial
sweetener, the egg and egg whites, the plum puree, vanilla, and
coffee mixture. Add the cocoa mixture to the plum puree and mix
well. Place the mixture on the baking tray.

Bake uncovered for about 18 to 20 minutes (or until done). Let
cool down. Sprinkle some powdered sugar on top of the brownies and
serve.